Coast Guard rescues 2 kayakers near Galveston Jetties

HOUSTON – Coast Guard crews rescued two men from a swamped kayak near the Galveston Jetties, today.

The Coast Guard watchstander at Sector Houston-Galveston received a call from a Galveston County Deputy Sheriff at 12:11 p.m. The Deputy Sheriff reported that they had received a call from a kayaker located 200 yards east of Galveston’s East Beach. The man stated he and a friend were in a kayak that had been swamped by a wave and they needed assistance.

A Coast Guard rescue boat crew from Station Galveston and an HH-65C rescue helicopter crew from the Air Station Houston were dispatched to provide assistance.

At 2 p.m. the helicopter crews located the men more than a mile east of the beach, and safely hoisted them from the water. The men were then transported to the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. Both kayakers were suffering from moderate hypothermia.

“The kayaker’s were not wearing life jackets,” said Gene Davis, a Coast Guard Search and Rescue Specialist at Sector Houston-Galveston. “They had no business being out there. There was a small craft advisory warning in effect. It was just plain unsafe to be out there in a boat that size.”

The Coast Guard reminds boaters to always wear their life jackets and to ensure that all required safety equipment is onboard their vessel and in good, working order. Boaters should always monitor weather broadcasts and keep an eye on the weather.